We are second-year nursing students at the U of M completing our personal care home clinical rotation. We would like to share our experiences and suggestions to improve the quality of care for older people based on our research and clinical experiences.

We have come up with five priorities with suggestions that should be considered by health-care policy decision makers.

First, it is important to improve education for everyone working with the older population in health care. This would benefit all health-care staff by eliminating ageism, stereotypes and judgment that can impede care, and create a culturally safe community for the older population, for nurses, health-care staff, aides and support workers.

Second, mandatory education and training on cultural safety, cultural differences and resources for minority and marginalized older people.  All health-care staff must be equipped to provide adequate care for all people. This would also include providing accessible translators and translation programs in health-care settings.

Third, social isolation must be addressed by implementing accessible and culturally appropriate social activities and interactive community socialization in all living situations. This would help older people who have minimal family or community support and reduce health decline associated with social isolation.

Fourth, increasing the affordability and accessibility of home care and support services, such as giving a grace period for older people and their families to find funds and/or financial support. This could also look like tax breaks or financial programs for families and older people who need it.

Lastly, since there is a growing population of older people, additional personal care homes, aging in place and alternative methods of assisted living must be added to meet the demand. These can include programs for co-living and additional communities for assisted living.

This letter was written by second-year nursing students at the University of Manitoba.